Jordan Spieth, surfacing as the next great golfer after winning The Masters and the U.S. Open, has dealt exceptionally well with success.

He is grateful and humble. He won the U.S. Open only after Dustin Johnson missed a short putt that would have forced an 18-hole playoff the following day. Spieth expressed empathy for Johnson’s plight, even if it was his own good fortune, pointing out how Spieth had gone through essentially the same thing, blowing a large lead because of a double-bogey on the 17th hole.

Spieth is just 21 years old. It’s been said and written more than a few times he is not charismatic, but isn’t it a bigger deal that Spieth is a good guy?

The U.S. Open wasn’t only a reminder that Spieth is a class act, but also of the continued downfall of Tiger Woods. Tiger exudes charisma, and there are plenty of those who will say he is a good guy. But there is little question at the height of his success,Woods didn’t always treat his legion of fans well, and he has long been prone to outward fits of anger involving swearing on the course. Then, it turned out Tiger was a phony when his womanizing and marital infidelity was exposed, all while he had been portraying himself as a traditional family man, and the consummate dedicated professional.

Advertisement

It’s been a rough span for some of the greats in sports. Those of us who had supported all-time MLB hits leader Pete Rose for Hall of Fame induction because he didn’t bet on baseball while he was playing were informed that he did. Also, there was the Tom Brady “Deflategate” hearing with the NFL in New York City.

Brady is the classic American success story. The tale of Brady as the sixth-round NFL Draft pick becoming arguably the greatest quarterback of all-time has taken on legendary proportions.

Yet, instead of nipping the “Deflategate” situation in the bud by coming clean, Brady made like the rapper Shaggy and starting singing, “It wasn’t me.”

The pondering about whether this has “tarnished Tom Brady’s legacy” is laughable. Of course it has.

It reached the point of absurdity at Yankee Stadium recently. Alex Rodriguez got his 3,000th hit – a home run off the Tigers’ Justin Verlander - and it wasn’t celebrated, even by his own organization. A-Rod and Barry Bonds are the greatest baseball players I have ever seen, and Roger Clemens the top pitcher. I have a Hall of Fame vote, and at least so far, I haven’t been able to hold my nose long enough to check the box next to their names on my ballot because of the stench of the performance enhancing drugs issue. I wonder if I ever should.

About the Author

Pat Caputo has written as a beat writer and sports columnist for The Oakland Press since 1984 and blogs at http://patcaputo.blogspot.com/. Reach the author at pat.caputo@oakpress.com
or follow Pat on Twitter: @PatCaputo98.